A Unionist leader is warning of violence returning to Northern Ireland, claiming Brexit is being used to force through huge political change without consent.<\/p>\n
Peter Robinson, a former first minister at Stormont, said leaders must recognise the odour of betrayal in the air, saying: We all know where that leads.<\/p>\n
The Northern Ireland Protocol which has created a trade border in the Irish Sea to protect the EU single market would lead to laws in the province being made in a Dublin-influenced EU, Unionists feared.<\/p>\n
There are forces using the exigencies of Brexit to advance a programme of constitutional change through stealth and propaganda, Mr Robinson said, in a newspaper article.<\/p>\n
My advice to those who are driving this agenda forward is as short as it is restrained. Take care.<\/p>\n
Read more:<\/p>\n
Some opposition would be vented more robustly than protest voting and be met with greater tolerance than it deserves, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) until 2015 said.<\/p>\n
We are perilously close to a line which, when crossed, will lock us all into a pattern all too familiar to my generation, he added.<\/p>\n
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The article comes amid stalemate over attempts to solve the crisis affecting imports from the UK because of vast red tape created by Boris Johnsons EU withdrawal deal.<\/p>\n
The EU has started legal action after the UK unilaterally delayed further checks and the two sides have not held direct talks involving ministers for one month.<\/p>\n
Supply problems that emptied supermarket shelves have eased, but the UK government admitted they would return if grace periods were ended, as agreed under the 2019 Protocol. <\/p>\n
Last month, food inspections at Northern Ireland ports were suspended following an upsurge in sinister and menacing behaviour and graffiti appeared to describe port staff as targets.<\/p>\n
The DUP has demanded the Protocol be scrapped altogether, but the UK government has rejected that while experts warn there is no alternative to the rules it imposes. <\/p>\n
Mr Robinson wrote: It is too easy to either be dismissed as a scaremonger or attacked for sabre-rattling.<\/p>\n
Unionists believed their rights are being violated, he said, adding: They reflect on the commitments they were given, and which have been appallingly broken leaving the odour of betrayal in the air.<\/p>\n
Those with wisdom who have their finger on the pulse should recognise the signals when a people become disenchanted with the system.<\/p>\n
Mr Robinson said: It would be wrong to assume that in time Unionists will calm down and eventually acquiesce. That is not my assessment.<\/p>\n
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Unionist leader warns of violence returning to Northern Ireland because of Brexit betrayal - The Independent<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A Unionist leader is warning of violence returning to Northern Ireland, claiming Brexit is being used to force through huge political change without consent. Peter Robinson, a former first minister at Stormont, said leaders must recognise the odour of betrayal in the air, saying: We all know where that leads Continue reading